The Mitsubishi Mirage is the WORST CAR you can buy!

[hydrive]

Originally Posted by MetroMPG

Sales of the 6th gen Mirage in the U.S. have increased every year since it debuted:

• 2935 ... 2013 (partial year)
• 16,708 ... 2014
• 21,515 ... 2015
• 22,226 ... 2016
• 22,386 ... 2017

Total U.S.: 85,770

What are the critics missing in this picture?

That's highly unusual for an aging model. (Though 2017 was undoubtedly helped by the addition of the sedan, otherwise the total probably would have dropped.)

The Canadian picture on the other hand has followed the expected pattern - the first full year was its peak.

My best educated guess as to why sales are up in the US and flat to falling in Canada is purely because the efficiency market is starved for selection. Unless you are particularly looking for an expensive hybrid drivetrain, we have so little efficiency cars in the US and Canadian markets. In Canada there's slightly more competition with the Micra, which isn't available state side, I think that is what has hurt Mirage sales.

What I mean by starved for selection is this: the North American market is so oriented toward huge, gas guzzling vehicles that we don't have a real selection of efficiency cars like you find in Europe. In Europe, there are diesel and gas engines that only generate 60-80 hp all over the place. There are plenty cars that are efficient (in a true sense) without a hybrid drivetrain. People in the US particularly don't like vehicles that can't get to 60mph in under 10 seconds. Personally, I don't understand why it matters if it takes 15 seconds to get to 120km or 20 to get it to 140. I'm not looking to race, so I'd like to see the diesel efficiency engines you see in Europe here in the NA market.

Anyway, that's why the Mirage has done well relatively. There's no competition. Hybrids are a different market, they are for people who feel like spending $30k on a basic car (and yes, that's what a Prius is, there's few frills in them beyond an electronic screen with some gadgety software fuel and trip meters).

Yes, you can say the Micra is competition, but really it isn't, because its not that super efficient. The engine is stronger and simply sucks more fuel.

I purchased a Chevrolet Spark, I like the car, but I'm not getting the fuel economy of a Mirage. I can barely get 5l/100km when conservatively driving on the highway, I often get 7l/100km in the terrible stop and go Toronto traffic. And the back seat in the Spark is not comfortable for more than a few minutes at a time.

Here's what I'd like to see, a car with the handling and quality of a Spark in the form of a Mirage G4. The G4 has tons of back seat space, better fuel economy, but the squishy Mirage handling.

[hydrive]

Originally Posted by Fat Charlie

So... News Flash: You Get What You pay For

The cheapest new car out there doesn't compete with more expensive cars on amenities or performance.

And they don't compete with the cheapest car on price.

Hmmm...

The Mirage *is* the definition of cheap; however, in 2018 cheap doesn't mean unreliable and bad. Cheap simply means its not filled with lavish pleather/leather and electronic lane control and other very high end features.

The problem in today's car buying world is that vehicles that cost $40k or even $60k don't necessarily last longer than a vehicle at a $15-20k price point.

Quality is in the eye of the beholder. If you're going to be underwater on a car payment for years, losing thousands when you drive it off the lot, and its not going to last any longer, AND if the larger expensive vehicles are going to drink gas until your wallet is dry, is it worth spending the cash on?

From what I can tell, the average Mirage is lasting years without major problems.

[MetroMPG]

Originally Posted by hydrive

In Canada there's slightly more competition with the Micra, which isn't available state side, I think that is what has hurt Mirage sales.

Agreed. I think the Mirage's relative success in the U.S. would not exist if Nissan had decided to sell the Micra south of the 49th. Canadian car reviewers almost universally love the Micra. Many (most?) American big name car reviewers love to hate the Mirage.

Yes, you can say the Micra is competition, but really it isn't, because its not that super efficient.

True. But I suspect the majority of people shopping in this segment care more about purchase price (ie. monthly payments) than running costs.

Nissan hit a marketing home run with its under-$10k MSRP on the Micra -- even though that's for the base model with manual transmission and no air conditioning, which almost nobody buys.

Chevrolet got in on the fun by challenging the Micra with a sub-$10k MSRP Spark, but again the price applies only to the base trim with manual and no A/C, so almost nobody buys the base model. But it generates marketing buzz. The automotive media dutifully reported Canada's latest "cheapest car".

Oddly, Mitsubishi never changed the Mirage's MSRP to compete directly with the "$9,995" Spark & Micra, which I think was a marketing mistake. Instead, they have offered an almost permanent factory rebate which effectively brings the Mirage's purchase price to the same level. (Again, only on the base car with manual trans and no A/C.)

[hydrive]

I bought a Spark last year, but there's two things I don't like: fuel economy is far worse than I expected. In stop and go city traffic I'm rarely getting under 7.1l/100km. My meter is constantly stuck just over that 7 mark, always. That's not good for such a small car.

The last problem I have is the back seat ended up being just too cramped. The head rests are terrible in the back of the spark, your head and shoulders are almost pushed forward because there's no room. I took a road trip with friends last year and we had to rotate out just to tolerate it...

Otherwise its a thrill of a car. As a two seater, its great. But I now wished I could have bought the G4, I remember test driving the car and the back seat was so comfy and huge. I didn't realize how much of a need I'd have for a large back seat when I ended up buying.

On the price you are correct, the Spark starts out low (as many of these economy cars do), but for the 1LT model with A/C and other things I was looking for was $16k. The price increased dramatically depending on the options. All I really wanted was android auto, a/c, and electric window controls. The other Spark on the lot for $13k (which I would have negotiated down a bit) had a/c but no android auto compatibility, no electric windows, and was manual.

I love manuals, but I don't know if I had the patience for Toronto traffic. This city is getting out of control with traffic flow...

[MetroMPG]

If you're talking true stop & go driving, very few cars are going to get close to their EPA / NRCAN ratings. The exception may be hybrids, making use of the engine stop feature & ability to drive at low speeds for short distances on electric power.

Curious: did you closely monitor the fuel economy of your previous car? Was it able to get near its official city fuel economy rating in the same conditions as the Spark? (I suspect not.)

[niky]

I've tested the Spark 1.4. Economy in stop and go isn't near what the Mirage 1.2 CVT can do. The Spark is much nicer to drive, though.

I don't mourn the loss of the 1.2. That wasn't a great engine. The S-TEC was simply an old Suzuki design built up and stretched way too far. The engines were thrashy, not very powerful and not as economical as the Suzuki mills they were based on. And did I mention thrashy? They sounded like they wanted to eat their guts every time you revved them past 4k rpm.

Too bad GM doesn't pull from the Suzuki stables anymore. Suzuki's current 1.4 is a sweet motor with decent economy for its size.

[hydrive]

Originally Posted by MetroMPG

If you're talking true stop & go driving, very few cars are going to get close to their EPA / NRCAN ratings. The exception may be hybrids, making use of the engine stop feature & ability to drive at low speeds for short distances on electric power.

Curious: did you closely monitor the fuel economy of your previous car? Was it able to get near its official city fuel economy rating in the same conditions as the Spark? (I suspect not.)

I don't expect it to get the exact specs, but 7.1? For one of the smallest sub-compacts on the market? Yea, I expected better fuel economy. Chevrolet opted to put the larger engine in, and yes it does have kind of a pocket-rocket feel to it, but that's not why I bought it.

What we don't have in Canada is the choice Europeans have in the efficiency segment. I've been in Europe and have rented the vehicles they have available. They have 60-70hp diesels (I don't recall if the ones I drove had a turbo, its been years now), but those vehicles are non-hybrids, they are bigger than the Spark, and I remember clearly getting better fuel economy in stop and go city driving than 7.1. I remember one trip I think in France where I got barely 4l/100km on an autoroute with a diesel going along at speeds well above 100k (speed limits in France are 130, which is what we should have in Ontario). It was a Peugeot, but I can't remember the model. I just remember it had an ultra efficient diesel, and yes it took probably 15 seconds to get it above 100km, but the efficiency is worth it. I'm not a racer, I could care less if I can't pass some hot head on the highway. As long as the car can cruise at 120km, I don't care if it takes a few seconds to get there.

What the typical North American driver demands is utterly absurd re: engine power.

[Xist]

Horsepower, clearance, eight charging ports, both Apple and Android compatibility, and a butt massager.

America!

[MetroMPG]

Don't forget the heated gas pedal.

[hydrive]

I rather like the idea of a butt massage.